What happened to work ethic? Major Rant.

In reply to mad_machine:

Must be time to open a fence company.

Same old crap. Needed work done to seal a metal roof. Hired a local, needed $900 down on an $1800 job. Worked an hour and a half. Never showed up again. Took them to small claims. Did not show up. Got judgment and now have to send to collection and try and collect. Why should they pay, they flat don't care----

mad_machine wrote: well.. so far I am half way done redoing my neighbors fence. All 80 feet ripped out and 40 put back in with new posts and in some case, post holes. I am probably going to have to redo all of his fencing as I am making the rest of it look -really- bad

Interested in putting up a fence in PA?

(not really joking...)

Here is where I chime in, with what most would never consider.

Go to Home Depot/Lowes... Both will arrange for one of their certified contractors to give an estimate..

3 Years ago I needed 24 windows replaced (I didn't need it but I wanted it)... Anyways, I had several other contractors come and Quote. Surprisingly the Home Depot quote was middle of the pack.... Home Depot quotes are good for six months... So I waited.......

About a month and a half later, they (Home Depot) ran a promotion... 100$ Home Depot gift card for every 1000$ spent using Home Depot contractors!!!! Home Depot does this promotion at least twice a year....

My bill was just North of 7000$ (Several of the other contractors gave me quotes North of 10,000$)...

Because of the promotion I received 700$ IN Home Depot gift cards. Although I did have to call their 800# and ask for them since my Quote wasn't done during the promotion.

Final Thoughts. Purchasing thru a major retailer was a great choice. for several reasons...

1. I did not get scammed.

2. They showed up at the appointed time, not a minute late. Or early, since I don't like to get up early..

3. They cleaned up all their E36 M3... It was cleaner than when they got there. That is part of the Home Depot sales pitch..

4. My Windows have a 10 year warranty. even if the contractor is no longer around, Home Depot will be around and give a full replacement warranty, for workmanship, or defects. In other words... It won't cost me a cent to replace. Unless I do something stupid and smash them with a brick.

5. The work done was damn good, these guys took pride in their work. There was not a blob of silicone, sealer, or a bit of flashing out of place.

6. I should add again that the Home Depot quote was middle of the pack with a great warranty from a company that will still be around.

the big box stores do have their uses .... it sucks not to let local/small time contractors/folk just trying to get along do the work ... but they all get tarred by the E36 M3ty work brush that goes before them

In Oz, you cannot call yourself a mechanic/builder/electrician/roofer unless you complete a 4 year apprenticeship which includes one week a month of schooling and 3 weeks working with a registered and qualified professional in that trade.

It reduces the number of fly by nighters by 10fold.

I still get an odd feeling when people call me a mechanic, I am not, I just wrench on my own crap.

wbjones wrote: the big box stores do have their uses .... it sucks not to let local/small time contractors/folk just trying to get along do the work ... but they all get tarred by the E36 M3ty work brush that goes before them

Who do you think Lowe's hires to come do a $5000 bathroom remodel? Fling in the A-team from the East Coast?

What Lowe's does is actually vet the contractor, then you have the multi-million dollar corporation standing behind the work and materials on the house.

This what we ended up doing after the first contractor walked off the job. I wish we had done it from the beginning. As I mentioned earlier, especially the guy they had come out and install our new doors. He was great.

My brother's company does work through HD down here and they are definitely hard assed on their subs.

viking wrote: Same old crap. Needed work done to seal a metal roof. Hired a local, needed $900 down on an $1800 job. Worked an hour and a half. Never showed up again. Took them to small claims. Did not show up. Got judgment and now have to send to collection and try and collect. Why should they pay, they flat don't care----

When he said he needed money down I would have shown him the door.

z31maniac wrote:

wbjones wrote: the big box stores do have their uses .... it sucks not to let local/small time contractors/folk just trying to get along do the work ... but they all get tarred by the E36 M3ty work brush that goes before them

Who do you think Lowe's hires to come do a $5000 bathroom remodel? Fling in the A-team from the East Coast? What Lowe's does is actually vet the contractor, then you have the multi-million dollar corporation standing behind the work and materials on the house. This what we ended up doing after the first contractor walked off the job. I wish we had done it from the beginning. As I mentioned earlier, especially the guy they had come out and install our new doors. He was great.

that's what I meant ... it's not you trying to use Angie's List or whatever, and even if someone slips through they're vetting, the co. itself stands behind the work (which is what you pointed out)

spitfirebill wrote:

viking wrote: Same old crap. Needed work done to seal a metal roof. Hired a local, needed $900 down on an $1800 job. Worked an hour and a half. Never showed up again. Took them to small claims. Did not show up. Got judgment and now have to send to collection and try and collect. Why should they pay, they flat don't care----

When he said he needed money down I would have shown him the door.

This. If he's in dire enough straits he can't invest $ up front in materials etc then I don't trust him to be around to complete the work, or I'm looking at a scammer.

wbjones wrote:

z31maniac wrote:

wbjones wrote: the big box stores do have their uses .... it sucks not to let local/small time contractors/folk just trying to get along do the work ... but they all get tarred by the E36 M3ty work brush that goes before them

Who do you think Lowe's hires to come do a $5000 bathroom remodel? Fling in the A-team from the East Coast? What Lowe's does is actually vet the contractor, then you have the multi-million dollar corporation standing behind the work and materials on the house. This what we ended up doing after the first contractor walked off the job. I wish we had done it from the beginning. As I mentioned earlier, especially the guy they had come out and install our new doors. He was great.

that's what I meant ... it's not you trying to use Angie's List or whatever, and even if someone slips through they're vetting, the co. itself stands behind the work (which is what you pointed out)

AHh, got it!

We had windows put in through Home Depot. Great experience. My wife was ready to clean a huge mess (she has been known to clean up my tools while I'm in the middle of a job) and the guys cleaned everything perfect. 4 or 5 years later and not a single issue.

Joey

Curmudgeon wrote:

spitfirebill wrote:

viking wrote: Same old crap. Needed work done to seal a metal roof. Hired a local, needed $900 down on an $1800 job. Worked an hour and a half. Never showed up again. Took them to small claims. Did not show up. Got judgment and now have to send to collection and try and collect. Why should they pay, they flat don't care----

When he said he needed money down I would have shown him the door.

This. If he's in dire enough straits he can't invest $ up front in materials etc then I don't trust him to be around to complete the work, or I'm looking at a scammer.

1/3 down, 1/3 half way, and final 1/3 on completion

I think a lot of the problem is (like some others have said) is that some of these contractors..aren't contractors. With the world in a 'world of hurt', there's a lot of amateurs out there thinking their amateur skills might actually lead to a real profession. They're not really honest with themselves about their skill level. It would be like me trying to be a mechanic on a pro race team (I know I'm really just a "parts changer").

OTOH, there are some real crooks out there these days. I still recall someone stopping in the street in front of our last place. "Sir, I've noticed you have cracks in your driveway. We've got some leftover materials from our last job, would you like for us to fix them?"

"Actually, this is a rental. I'm not spending any money on it."
"But we can get it done right now for $(I forget)!"
"Dude, this is a rental. I can give you my landlord's number if you want to call him."
"But we're here right now, you could get it done and bill him for it!"
"Nah, it's his property, and we're about to move out anyway."
"How about for (IIRC, half the original price)".

I said no, thanks..and walked away, with the guy still talking. The next day, I noticed the driveway of one of my elderly neighbors had been "fixed" with big lumps of new asphalt over the expansion joints in the concrete. I still wonder how much money the poor old guy had been swindled out of. Actually makes me kind of mad.

In reply to friedgreencorrado:

I own my place it is a 5 plex and live in one. I have used the same excuse to get sales people to shut up quick and go away!!

For example.... Natural Gas person bangs on the door, "hello sir we are selling cheap assed Natural Gas.. My reply "Talk to the landlord" he pays the utilities, and he doesn't live here"!!!! They have no idea I am the landlord. It ends the sales pitch before it starts!!

Also, to get rid of the religious types who come knocking at 8AM Saturday morning; after a long Friday night of drinking.. As soon as they start their pitch. Stop them and immediately ask them if they think that "Satan is a victim of a 'Bad Public Relations Department' ".

I used to have this problem several times a month from several local congregations.. I no longer have this problem!! It has been a few years now since any of the religious types have knocked on my door!! ALSO I have no problem with religious types in any manner. Just DON'T WAKE ME UP WITH YOUR MESSAGE AT 8AM ON A SATURDAY MORNING.. OR ANY MORNING!!!

In reply to drsmooth:

I'm stealing your tactic, now that I'm in a place I actually own. I wasted 20min with somebody who wanted to redo my windows last week.

And don't get me started talking about the various "missionaries", I'd flounder the thread. Egad, I hate that E36 M3. At 4 or 5 in the afternoon, it might be OK..but seriously--that early in the morning?!?!

And it's not just after party nights..I work 2nd shift, I don't get up until noon, even on a work day.

am i the only person that has no problem with flat out telling someone to get off my property and then just flat out ignoring them until they go away?

i live in MN- i was born in MN- but the "Minnesota Nice" gene seems to have skipped past me..

novaderrik wrote: i live in MN- i was born in MN- but the "Minnesota Nice" gene seems to have skipped past me..

But are you above average?

I actually had door to door people 5 days in a row when I was in college (lived in a house my mom owned) in the week leading up to finals.

Ended up putting up a sign that said,

"I don't car what your selling, what your preaching, or why. Solicitors NOT welcome, GO AWAY"

Actually clammed it up.

joey48442 wrote: We had windows put in through Home Depot. Great experience.

Same deal. Ended up using the guy outside of home depot later. I save a little, he makes a little more. In fact, he's about to do three more exterior doors for me - only took 13 years in the house to replace every window and door. :)

Ian F wrote:

mad_machine wrote: well.. so far I am half way done redoing my neighbors fence. All 80 feet ripped out and 40 put back in with new posts and in some case, post holes. I am probably going to have to redo all of his fencing as I am making the rest of it look -really- bad

Interested in putting up a fence in PA? (not really joking...)

While I enjoy the work.. I have no urge to do it professionally. My profession is already so transient. I can spent 8 hour setting up a show and see it driving off in another 4.. it is sometimes nice to stand back and say "I did that"

Well, it's done. They did an outstanding job. 2" of rain fell on it yesterday and not a drop got through. He's repairing the sheet rock today and my wife will be painting it Monday while the tenants are at work.

Toyman01 wrote: Well, it's done. They did an outstanding job. 2" of rain fell on it yesterday and not a drop got through. He's repairing the sheet rock today and my wife will be painting it Monday while the tenants are at work.

Hurray!

Sucks to here, here in the Bay Area I guess the housing market is overheated and contractors are in big demand. It sounds like the modis operendi is to take a deposit, then you leave a couple of junk tools around to show that you mean business. After that you just take the money and run. Glad to hear you got the problem resolved.